Among the Wildflowers
by Elsewhere-Kels
Summary: There is only so much a heart can take... and her's has shattered. Songfic. Tragic RinSesshomaru. Character death.


**Disclaimer: **I don't own Inuyasha by Rumiko Takahashi or the song "The Lass from the Low Country" by John Jacob Niles and Nina Simone.

This fic is a second person POV through Jaken's eyes. I know not many people like him, but I think he's pretty okay, even if he's a weird, grumpy toad thing.

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_Oh, she was a lass from the low country_

_And he was a lord of high degree_

_And she loved his lordship so tenderly_

You watch silently as she runs from the field to your lord; her pure, clear laughter echoing softly in the still, summer air. She calls out to him and for a moment you see the little girl again, tiny and giggling with naïve cheer. Then you blink, and remember that she's not so little anymore. Her eyes still sparkle with mirth as she hands him the blossoms, still full of life, but…. There is a new light there, of wisdom and maturity that had not been there before. She's grown, also, now a lovely young woman, though you'd never admit it out loud. You know your lord notices it as well. You have a feeling it bothers him to notice it.

Her smile, however, remains the same, the same smile you remember from years ago saw years ago when Sesshomaru-sama accepted the first bouquet of flowers she gave him, tucking them safely away. He doesn't say anything, but he accepts them and keeps them near. For Rin, you know that it's enough.

_Oh Sorrow… sing Sorrow!_

You watch silently as he slowly closes off, more and more around her. She doesn't understand, and he won't explain. Still she continues to bring him wildflowers, and he continues to accept them. This eases your mind somewhat, but deep down you still know that something is wrong.

_Now she sleeps in the valley where the wildflowers nod_

_And no one knows she loved him but herself…and God_

You watch silently as your lord leads you both to the outskirts of a human village, where you all rest for a little while near a field of flowers. He calls out that they are leaving, and she goes to him. You're close behind. She presents a bouquet of beautiful blossoms to him.

But he does not accept them.

_One morn when the sun was on the mead_

_He passed by her door on a milk white steed_

_She smiled and she spoke, but he paid no heed_

You watch silently as he tells her that Rin mustn't stay with him any longer. She cries out in denial, shaking her head. She pleads for him not to leave her behind. Sesshomaru-sama doesn't react well to this… He loses his temper, his voice becomes cold. He tells her that he can no longer waste his time with a weak human. He tells her that he will not be a fool, like his dead father. He leaves her, then, moving swifter than usual. You imagine he's trying to get away before her cries can sway his resolve. All you can do is follow, though as you look back on her fallen form, you feel quite torn.

_Oh Sorrow… sing Sorrow!_

That evening, you ride Ah-Un back to the field. You just… need to check on her.

What you find freezes your blood.

She's lying in the middle of the field, eyes shut, unmoving. Her ebony hair is spread, almost like a fan, within the grass and blossoms. You would have thought Rin was merely in a deep sleep… but she wasn't. She was pale, and cold as death; breath seemed to have fled from her. You feel a prickling behind your eyes, and soon moisture on your face. You knew that you had often complained about her, but you didn't want this… never this.

The strange thing is… there is no wound anywhere on her body. Nothing that had occurred when she was still with you and your lord gave any hint of illness. It seems as though she had simply laid down her head… and died.

You touch her slim, frail hand and murmur "I'm sorry." You hope with all your being that she heard. With some difficulty, you dig a grave and give her as proper a burial as you can without a priest present.

As you mount Ah-Un and take flight to return to your lord, you look down. There is a scattered bouquet of wildflowers on the pathway where you both left her.

_Now she sleeps in the valley where the wildflowers nod_

_And no one knows she loved him but herself…and God_

When you return, you tell your lord what has happened, tentatively. There is a long pause, before he nods. Then he leaves and you do not call out to him. He does not come back for several days. When he returns, you are not surprised to see him looking much wearier than usual, and with a great amount of blood, most of which is not his own, stained into his kimono.

_If you be a lass from the low country_

_Don't love a lord of high degree_

_They haint got a heart for sympathy_

Sometimes, when Sesshomaru-sama had watched her, you'd see his lips curve up very slightly in a ghost of a smile. But after that day, you never saw it again. Occasionally you think you hear her bell-like laughter ringing in the air, and sometimes her weeping cries of despair. You wonder if your lord hears it, too, but he never speaks of her, so neither do you. You used to turn, filled with hope for one mad, miniscule moment. But you don't check anymore, because no matter how much you wish it otherwise…

_Oh Sorrow… sing Sorrow!_

…It is just the wind, echoing your shattered memories.

_Now she sleeps in the valley where the wildflowers nod_

_And no one knows she loved him but herself…and God_

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Thank you for reading! Please review!

Au revoir!

Kelsey


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